Miloš Pušić’s new film Working Class Heroes, produced with the support of Film Center Serbia and starring the award-winning actress Jasna Đuričić p, was chosen to be part of the prestigious “Panorama” program at the Berlin Film Festival. The Berlin International Film Festival was founded in 1951 and is one of the three most important A-category film festivals in the world. The “Panorama” program screens independent and art house films dealing with controversial topics, as well as films with innovative aesthetics.
The film tells the story of a group of illegal construction workers who, left without money and basic rights, try to stand up to their bosses. Lidija (Jasna Đuričić) works for a controversial construction investor. Her job is to oversee a group of construction workers on the newly opened construction site. Workers are dissatisfied with their working conditions and are trying to fight for their rights. The situation is becoming more complicated and the struggle for workers’ rights turns into a struggle for life and death. Lydia must decide whose side she is on.
On the occasion of the recent premiere of his film at the Berlinale, Miloš Pušić said the following for the Film Center Serbia website: “After a very long and tedious process of working on the film, the invitation from the Berlinale came as a big positive shock and a huge reward. I am proud that we have been invited to such an important festival. I have never felt so free as when I made this film and so exhausted while finishing it. At times, it seemed that this journey had no end. Working Class Heroes would never have been finished without the help of fantastic people who found themselves in the team, selflessly took their time and convinced me to finish what we started. It’s wonderful to make a movie with friends. Participation at Berlin IFF is a victory for all of us. ”
In 2012, the project for the film Working Class Heroes participated in the script development platform (Script Station) held as part of the Berlin Festival. In November 2020, Film Center Serbia approved funds for Pušić to complete the film in the category of Stimulation of a self-made domestic feature film, with the explanation that it is a film that “disturbs and shakes”. “Perhaps the greatest value of this film is the empathy with which the director and the actors tell this story about the lost dignity of workers,” reads the explanation of the Commission. “It is clear from the film that they are embarking on telling this story without any calculations other than the desire to make this a film whose heart is in the right place.”
Miloš Pušić was born in 1980. He graduated film directing at the Academy of Arts in Novi Sad, where he is now employed as an assistant professor. He directed the short feature film Lullaby for a Boy (2007), followed by two feature films: Autumn in My Street (2009) and Dying (2013). Pušić produced the film My Morning Laughter (2019) by Marko Đorđević.
The film “Heroes of the Working Class” was created under the auspices of Pusic’s production company Altertisa, and the screenwriters, in addition to director / producer Pušić include his long-time collaborators Dušan Spasojević and Ivan Knežević. The DOP is Aleksandar Ramadanović, set design is by Miljena Vučković, costumes by Marina Sremac, sound design by Stevan Milošević and Boris Zaborski. The film was edited by Ivan Knežević and Miloš Pušić.
Alongside Jasna Đuričić, who recently won the award for best European actress for her role in Quo Vadis, Aida? the film stars Boris Isaković, Predrag Momčilović, Stefan Beronja Cile, Aleksandar Đurica, Mihajlo Badža Pleskonjić, Bojana Milanović, Ervin Hadžimurtezić, Filip Đurić, Peđa Marjanović, Marko Vasiljević i drugi. The film was produced with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Serbia, the Secretariat for Culture of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina and Film Center Serbia. The film runtime is 85 minutes.
In addition to “Heroes of the Working Class, Poslevode, a minority Serbian co-production directed by Dane Komljen, will be screened at the 72nd Berlin International Film Festival, as part of the “Forum” selection. The production of this film was also supported by Film Center Serbia and the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Serbia.
